Convergent evolution in aquatic tetrapods: insights from an exceptional fossil mosasaur.

Mosasaurs (family Mosasauridae) are a diverse group of secondarily aquatic lizards that radiated into marine environments during the Late Cretaceous (98-65 million years ago). For the most part, they have been considered to be simple anguilliform swimmers--i.e., their propulsive force was generated...

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Autores principales:	Johan Lindgren, Michael W Caldwell, Takuya Konishi, Luis M Chiappe
Formato:	article
Lenguaje:	EN
Publicado:	Public Library of Science (PLoS) 2010
Materias:	Medicine R Science Q
Acceso en línea:	https://doaj.org/article/ad8bf11728aa470fa8bc9de181287a5d
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spelling	oai:doaj.org-article:ad8bf11728aa470fa8bc9de181287a5d2021-11-18T06:36:20ZConvergent evolution in aquatic tetrapods: insights from an exceptional fossil mosasaur.1932-620310.1371/journal.pone.0011998https://doaj.org/article/ad8bf11728aa470fa8bc9de181287a5d2010-08-01T00:00:00Zhttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/pmid/20711249/?tool=EBIhttps://doaj.org/toc/1932-6203Mosasaurs (family Mosasauridae) are a diverse group of secondarily aquatic lizards that radiated into marine environments during the Late Cretaceous (98-65 million years ago). For the most part, they have been considered to be simple anguilliform swimmers--i.e., their propulsive force was generated by means of lateral undulations incorporating the greater part of the body--with unremarkable, dorsoventrally narrow tails and long, lizard-like bodies. Convergence with the specialized fusiform body shape and inferred carangiform locomotory style (in which only a portion of the posterior body participates in the thrust-producing flexure) of ichthyosaurs and metriorhynchid crocodyliform reptiles, along with cetaceans, has so far only been recognized in Plotosaurus, the most highly derived member of the Mosasauridae. Here we report on an exceptionally complete specimen (LACM 128319) of the moderately derived genus Platecarpus that preserves soft tissues and anatomical details (e.g., large portions of integument, a partial body outline, putative skin color markings, a downturned tail, branching bronchial tubes, and probable visceral traces) to an extent that has never been seen previously in any mosasaur. Our study demonstrates that a streamlined body plan and crescent-shaped caudal fin were already well established in Platecarpus, a taxon that preceded Plotosaurus by 20 million years. These new data expand our understanding of convergent evolution among marine reptiles, and provide insights into their evolution's tempo and mode.Johan LindgrenMichael W CaldwellTakuya KonishiLuis M ChiappePublic Library of Science (PLoS)articleMedicineRScienceQENPLoS ONE, Vol 5, Iss 8, p e11998 (2010)
institution	DOAJ
collection	DOAJ
language	EN
topic	Medicine R Science Q
spellingShingle	Medicine R Science Q Johan Lindgren Michael W Caldwell Takuya Konishi Luis M Chiappe Convergent evolution in aquatic tetrapods: insights from an exceptional fossil mosasaur.
description	Mosasaurs (family Mosasauridae) are a diverse group of secondarily aquatic lizards that radiated into marine environments during the Late Cretaceous (98-65 million years ago). For the most part, they have been considered to be simple anguilliform swimmers--i.e., their propulsive force was generated by means of lateral undulations incorporating the greater part of the body--with unremarkable, dorsoventrally narrow tails and long, lizard-like bodies. Convergence with the specialized fusiform body shape and inferred carangiform locomotory style (in which only a portion of the posterior body participates in the thrust-producing flexure) of ichthyosaurs and metriorhynchid crocodyliform reptiles, along with cetaceans, has so far only been recognized in Plotosaurus, the most highly derived member of the Mosasauridae. Here we report on an exceptionally complete specimen (LACM 128319) of the moderately derived genus Platecarpus that preserves soft tissues and anatomical details (e.g., large portions of integument, a partial body outline, putative skin color markings, a downturned tail, branching bronchial tubes, and probable visceral traces) to an extent that has never been seen previously in any mosasaur. Our study demonstrates that a streamlined body plan and crescent-shaped caudal fin were already well established in Platecarpus, a taxon that preceded Plotosaurus by 20 million years. These new data expand our understanding of convergent evolution among marine reptiles, and provide insights into their evolution's tempo and mode.
format	article
author	Johan Lindgren Michael W Caldwell Takuya Konishi Luis M Chiappe
author_facet	Johan Lindgren Michael W Caldwell Takuya Konishi Luis M Chiappe
author_sort	Johan Lindgren
title	Convergent evolution in aquatic tetrapods: insights from an exceptional fossil mosasaur.
title_short	Convergent evolution in aquatic tetrapods: insights from an exceptional fossil mosasaur.
title_full	Convergent evolution in aquatic tetrapods: insights from an exceptional fossil mosasaur.
title_fullStr	Convergent evolution in aquatic tetrapods: insights from an exceptional fossil mosasaur.
title_full_unstemmed	Convergent evolution in aquatic tetrapods: insights from an exceptional fossil mosasaur.
title_sort	convergent evolution in aquatic tetrapods: insights from an exceptional fossil mosasaur.
publisher	Public Library of Science (PLoS)
publishDate	2010
url	https://doaj.org/article/ad8bf11728aa470fa8bc9de181287a5d
work_keys_str_mv	AT johanlindgren convergentevolutioninaquatictetrapodsinsightsfromanexceptionalfossilmosasaur AT michaelwcaldwell convergentevolutioninaquatictetrapodsinsightsfromanexceptionalfossilmosasaur AT takuyakonishi convergentevolutioninaquatictetrapodsinsightsfromanexceptionalfossilmosasaur AT luismchiappe convergentevolutioninaquatictetrapodsinsightsfromanexceptionalfossilmosasaur
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Convergent evolution in aquatic tetrapods: insights from an exceptional fossil mosasaur.

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